Finlay Minerals announces the commencement of the 2025 PIL & ATTY Property Exploration Programs

VANCOUVER, BC, June 18, 2025 /CNW/ - Finlay Minerals Ltd. (TSXV: FYL) (OTCQB: FYMNF) ("Finlay" or the "Company") is pleased to announce the start of the 2025 exploration programs for its PIL and ATTY Properties within the Toodoggone Mining District of Northern British Columbia.  These programs are fully funded under the Earn-In Agreements with Freeport-McMoRan Mineral Properties Canada Inc. ("Freeport"). Under these agreements, Freeport can earn up to an 80% interest in each property by investing $35 million in exploration expenditures and making cash payments of $4.1 million over a period of six years. (Reference #1).

Figure 1. Toodoggone Porphyry Corridor highlighting northeast-southwest extensional trends that host significant porphyry and epithermal deposits, resources and targets within the region. (CNW Group/Finlay Minerals Ltd.)

The exploration programs at PIL and ATTY are designed to best outline and prioritize as many targets as possible for drill testing in 2026. The 2025 programs at both PIL and ATTY will consist of the following activities with Finlay acting as Operator:

• Detailed, property-wide ,100 metre ("m") line-spaced airborne magnetic surveys;
• extensive induced polarization ("IP") geophysical surveys;
• detailed geological and alteration mapping and expanded rock and soil sampling on up to 8 target areas on the PIL and up to 3 target areas on the ATTY depending on weather and conditions.

The exploration crews are anticipated to arrive on the PIL Property in the coming week and the exploration programs are expected to extend into late August.  Finlay will provide additional updates on the progress and results of the exploration programs as they become available in the coming months.

Finlay's President and CEO, Ilona Lindsay, states: 

"The proposed exploration programs for 2025 will permit us to continue to advance these promising projects through systematic exploration," says Lindsay. 

"We are excited to build on the successes of previous exploration campaigns, especially given the highly encouraging results seen at the PIL South and in the Wrich area.

Freeport's expertise and funding significantly enhances our ability to carry out systemic and comprehensive exploration across both properties. This is a transformative opportunity for Finlay Minerals."  

PIL Property:

Exploration on the PIL Property will focus on the western Toodoggone porphyry corridor that includes Freeport and Amarc's newly discovered AuRORA Au-Cu porphyry system, Centerra Gold's Kemess North and Kemess East Deposits and the former Kemess South Mine – refer to Figure 1.  Exploration will be prioritized at and around the PIL South Target, working on the theory that the major porphyry centres occur along northeast-southwest trends within this corridor. In 2024, drilling at PIL South intercepted Cu-Au porphyry mineralization.  Other targets on the PIL Property include favorable geological, alteration, and surface geochemical environments with other porphyry indicators such as high-sulphidation systems.

Details of the PIL Property exploration targets can be found in the Company's PIL Technical Presentation on the Finlay website at www.finlayminerals.com.

ATTY Property:

Exploration work on the ATTY Property will focus on the Wrich target which is adjacent to the SWT target on the Joy Property. The SWT target hosts a >2 kilometre ("km") copper geochemical anomaly that is open to the south and extends onto the ATTY Property for another 1.2 km to the southeast.

Details of the ATTY Property exploration targets can be found in the Company's ATTY Technical Presentation on the Finlay website at www.finlayminerals.com. 

Freeport negotiated Earn-In agreements on both the PIL and ATTY Properties whereby Freeport can earn an 80% interest in each property by spending $35 million in exploration expenditures and $4.1 million cash payments of over six years (Reference # 1).   Freeport-McMoRan (FCX) is a leading international metals company focused on copper, with major operations in the Americas and Indonesia and significant reserves of copper, gold, and molybdenum.

References:

1. Finlay news releases NR 03-25 dated April 17, 2025 entitled: "Finlay Minerals Enters into Earn-In Agreements with Freeport for its PIL & ATTY Properties" and NR 05-25 dated May 2, 2025 and entitled: "Finlay Minerals Receives TSX Venture Exchange Approval for PIL Earn-In Agreement."

Qualified Person:

Wade Barnes, P. Geo. and Vice President, Exploration for Finlay Minerals and a qualified person as defined by National Instrument 43-101, has approved the technical content of this news release.

About Finlay Minerals Ltd.

Finlay is a TSXV company focused on exploration for base and precious metal deposits with five properties in northern British Columbia:

• The ATTY Property covers 3,875 hectares ("ha") of sub-alpine terrain in the southern Toodoggone region. The Toodoggone is a northwest-trending belt of Triassic to Jurassic arc terranes that hosts numerous significant porphyry Cu-Au ± Ag and associated epithermal Au-Ag deposits. The ATTY Property is in between and contiguous to Centerra Gold's Kemess Project and the JOY Project held by Amarc Resources and Freeport-McMoRan. The ATTY Property's KEM target has similarities to the Kemess North Trend, which hosts the Kemess Underground and Kemess East deposits.
• 
  The PIL Property, which covers 13,374 ha in the heart of the Toodoggone region, has numerous porphyry Cu-Au ± Ag targets and associated epithermal Au-Ag mineralization. The PIL Property is neighboured by Amarc Resources and Freeport-McMoRan's JOY Project and TDG Gold Corporation's Shasta/Baker and Sofia Properties. The PIL Property is also 25 km northwest of Centerra Gold's past-producing Kemess South Mine and 15 km east of Thesis Gold's Lawyers Project.

• The Silver Hope Property covers 21,322 ha and surrounds the past-producing Equity Silver Mine in the prospective Skeena Arch region of central B.C. The Silver Hope contains the Main Trend which is a >2 km Cu-Ag-Au mineralized trend with mineralization starting at surface.  West of the Main Trend is the West Cu-Mo Porphyry which is also mineralized starting from surface. The Property hosts a network of forestry roads and trails and has all-year access from Houston, BC.
  
  
• The SAY Property covers 26,202 ha and is located 140 km north of Smithers, B.C. The SAY Property is within a 135-km long belt of relatively unexplored Stikine Terrane, with American Eagle Gold's NAK and Amarc Resources and Boliden Mineral Canada's DUKE Cu-Mo-Ag-Au porphyry prospects at the southern end, to HDI Quartz Mountain Resources Ltd.'s Jake Project Cu-Au-Ag porphyry discovery at the north end of the belt. The SPUR and SHEL zones are the most advanced targets on the SAY property. The SPUR is a high-grade Cu-Ag structural controlled vein and breccia target extending for 4.3 km with assays up to 15.8% Cu and 993 g/t Ag. The SHEL target area is a Cu-Mo porphyry identified by historic mapping and drilling.
  
  
• The JJB Property covers 15,423 ha 10 km north of the SAY Property.  The JJB Property covers known gossans with associated Cu-Au-Ag geochemical anomalies.

Finlay trades under the symbol "FYL" on the TSXV and under the symbol "FYMNF" on the OTCQB. For further information and details, please visit the Company's website at www.finlayminerals.com.

On behalf of the Board of Directors,

Robert F. Brown
Executive Chairman of the Board & Director

Neither the TSXV nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSXV) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Forward-Looking Information: This news release includes certain "forward-looking information" and "forward-looking statements" (collectively, "forward-looking statements") within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation. All statements in this news release that address events or developments that we expect to occur in the future are forward-looking statements.  Forward-looking statements are statements that are not historical facts and are generally, although not always, identified by words such as "expect", "plan", "anticipate", "project", "target", "potential", "schedule", "forecast", "budget", "estimate", "intend" or "believe" and similar expressions or their negative connotations, or that events or conditions "will", "would", "may", "could", "should" or "might" occur. All such forward-looking statements are based on the opinions and estimates of management as of the date such statements are made. Forward-looking statements in this news release include statements regarding, among others, the exploration plans for the PIL & ATTY Properties. Although Finlay believes the expectations expressed in such forward-looking statements are based on reasonable assumptions, such statements are not guarantees of future performance and actual results or developments may differ materially from those forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in forward-looking statements include market prices, exploration successes, and continued availability of capital and financing and general economic, market or business conditions. These forward-looking statements are based on a number of assumptions including, among other things, assumptions regarding general business and economic conditions, the timing and receipt of regulatory and governmental approvals, the ability of Finlay and other parties to satisfy stock exchange and other regulatory requirements in a timely manner, the availability of financing for Finlay's proposed transactions and programs on reasonable terms, and the ability of third-party service providers to deliver services in a timely manner. Investors are cautioned that any such statements are not guarantees of future performance and actual results or developments may differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements. Finlay does not assume any obligation to update or revise its forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future or otherwise, except as required by applicable law.

SOURCE Finlay Minerals Ltd.

For further information, contact: Finlay Minerals Ltd., Ilona Lindsay, President & CEO & Director,, Tel: [phone], [email protected]